UM sweating, feeling good

Michigan s Rich Rodriguez had a good time at his first practice.TONY DING / APEnlarge

ANN ARBOR - Terrance Taylor was still sweating profusely an hour after leaving the field.

Fellow defensive lineman Will Johnson already needed a change of shirts just minutes after changing and walking into the Commons at Schembechler Hall.

This was the aftermath as Michigan kicked off its first fall practice yesterday afternoon with coach Rich Rodriguez at the helm.

"It was intense," Johnson said. "It was a good first day. It was intense. It was hot, muggy. But we're all in good shape even though we're a little sweaty. Everybody's tired because we started working out at 8 in the morning lifting [weights]."

The Wolverines know now what to expect from Rodriguez and his emphasis on elite conditioning.

The day began early for the players in the weight room, followed by practice in the afternoon with Motown hits blaring from speakers to greet the players and conditioning drills at the end.

Rodriguez had said earlier that Grady would be suspended indefinitely and would need to meet certain criteria to be reinstated with the Wolverines.

"He's still suspended as far as actual games, but he's practicing," Rodriguez said yesterday. "He's done enough to earn his status back on the team but he's not done enough yet to warrant playing time."

PRESEASON RANKINGS:

Rodriguez also addressed the Wolverines' No. 24 preseason ranking in the USA Today coaches' poll, despite returning only one starter on offense.

"Who cares?" Rodriguez said. "They probably shouldn't even take a poll until October. The reason why we're probably ranked there [even though] we lost a lot of players is because of the reputation of Michigan, I would assume. But it don't matter."

Contact Zach Silka at:

zsilka@theblade.com.

42.28188-83.74848

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